Victoria's photo album, the Collins edition from the second world war until the 1960s.

1. Victoria’s Photo
Album
The Collins Edition
The hand written descriptions above the photos are Victoria’s.
Comments and information below photos have been added to
assist in describing the photo and family history.

2. Harry As Lance Corporal
Harold as Lance Corporal in the Suffolk Regiment

3. Reg At 31/2 Years As Mai West 1941
The above photo of Reg was taken at Keynsham Gardens, Eltham,
London in 1941, where he was being fostered with Agnes and Ernest
Clark after the divorce of Harold from his first wife. Harold had been
conscripted into the army for the Second World War.

4. Me, Harry And Reg
At Keynsham Gardens Sept 1942
Victoria, Harold and Reg at Keynsham Gardens, Eltham, London in
1942. Harold was now a Corporal and this was where he first met
Victoria, who became his second wife.

5. Ivy & Alan’s Wedding 1943
Harold’s sister’s wedding with their father Charles Collins on the right.

6. Reg At Five Years Old

7. Harry Getting His Orders Abroad
Harold saw active service in North Africa, Sicily and Italy
serving in the Northamptonshire Regiment.

8. Harry & His Mates Waiting For
Demob, Austria 1945
Harold is third from left at the rear.

9. Our Wedding 1946
From the left: Harold's mother Maria Collins. Bridesmaid Hazel, Victoria's sister. John Gilmore
Best Man who married Victoria's sister Jean. Beside Bride: William Clark her Uncle, who gave
Victoria away as her father Ernest Clark had already died. Youngest bridesmaid not known,
possibly Brenda Neville? Bridesmaid Joan, Victoria's sister. Victoria's mother Agnes Clark.

10. Groom & Bride
Harold and Victoria were married on 12th January 1946
at the Congregation Church, Eltham, South East London.

11. Best Man John Congratulating Us
John Gilmore who married Victoria's sister Jean.

12. Harry & Reg
Our Holiday After The War
Their holiday together after the war was spent at Babacombe in Torquay, Devon.

13. Reg & Me
At Babacombe in Torquay, Devon

14. Mum Collins, Harry, Tony & Reg
Maria Louisa Collins (nee Swan), Harry, Tony and Reg. Believe it to
be at Harold's parents home in Landport, Portsmouth, Hampshire.

15. Mum & Dad Collins
Maria Louisa (nee Swan) and Charles Collins
Harold’s parents

16. Reg, Harry & Tony
Possibly taken at Keysham Gardens, Eltham, London

17. The children are in front of a WW2 garden air raid shelter. Brenda is standing at the
back and possibly Sandra is the girl on the right. This was Joyce & Fred’s prefab
home in Plumstead, near Woolwich. Victoria, Reg and Tony lived with them and
Harold at the weekends until they moved to St Albans where Harold had found work
again as a Print Compositor and was given Council accommodation.

18. Joyce, Fred, Brenda and Sandra at the front door of their flat,
in Churchbury Road, Eltham, where they moved to from Plumstead.
Tony spent some of his summer school holidays with them.

19. Our First Home
in Lecton Lane, St Albans
One of the many prefabs (post Second World War prefabricated homes)
built to house the returning forces and their families.

20. Reg & Tony With Cousins
From the left at the back is a Heading cousin from Stanmore and Reg.
Not sure who the girl on the left is, but Tony is centre with Sandra Neville on the right.

21. Outside Our Home In Lecton Lane
Can You Mend My Trousers Please
Victoria, Harold,
Reg and Tony.

22. Reg At School
Reg is standing in second row indicated by the arrow.

23. Reg’s School Photo

24. Maureen,s Christening At 4 Months

25. Maureen At 5 Years

26. Tony’s School Photo

27. Reg As A Teenager

28. Maureen, David? & Tony
Maureen, David? & Tony at one of the Men’s Club Christmas parties.
Nobody was ever totally sure whether it was David in between them,
but it has now been agreed that it must be!

29. Reg In Malaya 1959
Reg in the 3rd East Anglia Regiment during national service
abroad in Malaya towards the end of the communist uprising.

30. Reg In Malaya 1959
Reg on the right with Tammy after And in full dress uniform
two weeks in the jungle

31. Reg’s Christmas In Malaya
Reg is on the right with fork in mouth!

32. Maureen At 8 Years Old
Maureen in the Brownies.

33. Youth Club, Plus Bert & May
From Portsmouth
Victoria and Harold ran a youth club for many years at Tavistock Sunday School,
St Albans. This was an outing to Southsea in 1961. Harold's brother Albert from
Portsmouth is sitting between Harold and Victoria, and his wife May is sitting left of
Harold. Their daughter Joan and her husband are in the deckchairs on the left.

34. Reg, Victoria & Harold
Tony & Maureen with
David between them.
The Collins family in the early 1960s in the garden at Cottonmill Lane, St Albans.

35. Reg & Brenda’s Wedding
Their marriage in 1962

36. David As Page Boy
David at about 5 years

37. Maureen As Bridesmaid
Maureen at about 9 years old

38. Harry with Ivy Killick (Brenda’s Mother)

39. Len Killick Brenda’s Father with Victoria

40. David & Tony Maureen & Rita Brenda’s Sister
At Reg & Brenda’s Wedding Reception

41. Sisters Alice and Agnes (Nan Clark)

42. Bert (Harold’s Brother) & His Wife May
From Portsmouth

43. Dennis (Victoria’s Brother) & His Wife Joyce

44. Ethel & Grace (Agnes Clark’s Sisters)

45. Fred & Joyce (Victoria’s Sister)

46. Hazel & Eric (Victoria’s Sister & Brother)

47. Ivy (Harold’s Sister) With Her Husband Alan

48. Ethel (Agnes Clark’s Sister) With Her Husband Jack

49. Sisters Janet & Susan Daughters of
Dennis (Victoria’s Brother) & Joyce

50. Jean (Victoria’s Sister) With Her Husband John
And Their Son Michelle

51. Sandra & Brenda
Daughters of Joyce (Victoria’s Sister) & Fred

52. Joan (Victoria’s Sister) With Her Husband Tommy

53. Uncle Will (Ernest Clark’s Brother) or Snozz as he was nicknamed.
He must have had a tough old nose and head, as in later life he walked through
a plate glass entrance door at Mandeville Primary School in St Albans.
As the glass fell around him, he just shook his head and walked on!

54. Harry, Victoria, Maureen and David

55. David At 5 Years Old
David in the garden at Cottonmill Lane, St Albans.

56. Maureen 1963 At 11 Years
Maureen in the garden at Cottonmill Lane, St Albans.

57. Maureen With David
David and Maureen in 1963

58. Agnes (Nan) Clark
Child Unknown?

59. Nan (Agnes) Clark on holiday with Brenda and Reg
with Adrian and Bridget

60. Harry & Me Helping At Fete
(David with his back to camera?)
Harold on left and Victoria on right, helping at one of the Sunday School Fetes.
David has his back to camera and possibly Brenda with specs and hat on just behind
Victoria. Tavistock Interdenominational Sunday School, St Albans.

61. Me, Brenda & Harry Helping At Fete
Victoria, Brenda and Harold in 1964, helping at one of the
Sunday School Fetes in Mandeville School, St Albans.
(Tavistock Interdenominational Sunday School)

62. Maureen with The Youth Club
Maureen is just below the Olympic gold medals Linda Ludgrove
won for swimming possibly in the year 1966?

63. Maureen
Maureen at 15 years old.

64. Maureen With Her Workmates At The
Waterend Barn
The Waterend Barn Pub Restaurant, St Albans

65. Harry Play Acting
At Men’s Club Party
Harold is second from the right.

66. Harry Receiving An Award
At The Men’s Club
This may possibly be for a knobbly knees contest, as he always won them!

67. London Airport At Start Of Holiday
At Heathrow Airport dropping off a French student to catch his plane.
It is surprising how many people plus luggage could get into a Morris 1000 those days!
This was also the start of the tragic family holiday in the New Forest
where Maureen died from thrombosis at the very young age of fifteen years.

68. David, Maureen & Victoria when the family stopped for tea and
cakes aboard The Windsor Castle liner which was docked in
Southampton harbour.

69. Harold Leonard Collins and Victoria May (nee Clark)